Dynasties of Ancient Egypt |
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The Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Dynasties of ancient Egypt are often combined under the group title, New Kingdom. This dynasty is considered to be the last one of the New Kingdom of Egypt, and was followed by the Third Intermediate Period.
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The Pharaohs of the 20th dynasty ruled for approximately one hundred and twenty years: from ca 1187 to 1064 BC. The dates and names in the table are taken from Dodson and Hilton. [1]. Many of the pharaohs were buried in the Valley of the Kings in Thebes (designated KV). More information can be found on the Theban Mapping Project website. [2]
name of King | Horus (Throne) Name | date | Burial | Queen(s) |
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Setnakhte | Userkhaure | 1187 - 1185 BC | KV14 | Tiy-merenese |
Ramesses III | Usermaatre-Meryamun | 1185 - 1153 BC | KV11 | Iset Ta-Hemdjert Tiye |
Ramesses IV | User/Heqamaatre Setepenamun | 1153 - 1146 BC | KV2 | Duatentopet |
Ramesses V Amenhirkhepeshef I | Usermaatre Sekheperenre | 1146 - 1141 BC | KV9 | Henutwati Tawerettenru |
Ramesses VI Amenhirkhepeshef II | Nebmaatre Meryamun | 1141 - 1133 BC | KV9 | Nubkhesbed |
Ramesses VII Itamun | Usermaatre Setepenre Meryamun | 1133 - 1125 BC | KV1 | |
Ramesses VIII Sethhirkhepeshef | Usermaatre Akhenamun | 1125 - 1123 BC | ||
Ramesses IX Khaemwaset I | Neferkare Setepenre | 1123 - 1104 BC | KV6 | Baketwernel |
Ramesses X Amenhirkhepeshef III | Khepermaatre Setepenre | 1104 - 1094 BC | KV18 | Tyti |
Ramesses XI Khaemwaset II | Menmaatre Setpenptah | 1094 - 1064 BC | KV4 | Tentamun |
Pharaoh Setnakhte was likely already middle aged when he took the throne after Queen Twosret. He only ruled for a short time when he was succeeded by his son Ramesses III. Egypt was threatened by the Sea Peoples during this time period, but Ramesses III was able to defeat this confederacy from the Near East. The king is also known for a harem conspiracy in which Queen Tiye attempted to assassinate the king and put her son Pentawere on the throne. The coup was not successful in the end. The king may have died from the attempt on his life, but it was his legitimate heir Ramesses IV who succeeded him to the throne. After this a succession of kings named Ramesses take the throne, but none would truly achieve greatness. [3]
The period of these rulers is notable for the beginning of the systematic robbing of the Royal Tombs. Many surviving administrative documents from this period are records of investigations and punishment for these crimes, especially in the reigns of Ramses IX and Ramses XI.[4]
As happened under the earlier Nineteenth Dynasty, this group struggled under the effects of the bickering between the heirs of Ramesses III. For instance, three different sons of Ramesses III are known to have assumed power as Ramesses IV, Ramesses VI and Ramesses VIII respectively. However, at this time Egypt was also increasingly beset by a series of droughts, below-normal flooding levels of the Nile, famine, civil unrest and official corruption – all of which would limit the managerial abilities of any king. The power of the last king, Ramesses XI, grew so weak that in the south the High Priests of Amun at Thebes became the effective defacto rulers of Upper Egypt, while Smendes controlled Lower Egypt even before Ramesses XI's death. Smendes would eventually found the Twenty-First dynasty at Tanis.[5]